Jimmy Graham Should Be Infuriated By Tight End Franchise Tag

Darren Heitner
, ContributorI cover the intersection of sports and money.Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.

The New Orleans Saints used a franchise tag on Jimmy Graham. The critical question, which was presented to arbitrator Stephen Burbank, was whether Graham should be labeled a tight end or a wide receiver. The distinction was worth roughly $5 million; as a tight end Graham would be due $7.053 million for one year's work, while a wide receiver label would entitle him to $12.132 million. Mere days ago, arbitrator Burbank ruled that Jimmy Graham is a tight end despite some belief that Graham lined up in a typical wide receiver position on 67% of the New Orleans Saints' snaps during the 2013 NFL season. Jimmy Graham deserves to be angry with the result.

The 2011-20 NFL/NFLPA Collective Bargaining Agreement fleshes out the guidelines for the use of franchise tags within Article 10 of the lengthy document. Section 1 of that Article states, in part, "each Club shall be permitted to designate one of its players who would otherwise be an Unrestricted Free Agent as a Franchise Player each season during the term of this Agreement." A formula encompassing the salaries of players at the position in which a player "participated in the most plays during the prior League Year," is used to determine the value assigned to a Franchised Player. Arbitrator Burbank found in favor of the New Orleans Saints and cited testimony from Saints head coach Sean Payton to justify his ruling.

Despite some criticism launched against Payton for testifying against one of his most valuable players, it would be improper for Graham to hold hard feelings against the coach. Payton is employed by the New Orleans Saints and was acting as a fiduciary for the team, whether that is ever admitted or not. Further, he may have truly believed that because Graham was often defended by a linebacker or strong safety, that technically qualified him as a tight end.

Jimmy Graham is set to earn $5 million less labeled as a tight end as opposed to a wide receiver. (Photo credit: Tom Pumphret)

Instead, Graham's gripe should be with the NFL franchise tag itself. The definition of what constitutes position participation is ambiguous and the Collective Bargaining Agreement is technically a document that was drafted by both the NFL and the NFLPA. Thus, it remains up to what is deemed to be an impartial arbitrator to make an arbitrary determination that concludes with a cost or windfall of roughly $5 million in the case of Jimmy Graham.

The process not just. It is reminiscent of 1992 when a federal court jury found the existing free agency system to be unfair. The ruling struck down the NFL's "Plan B," which allowed teams to restrict the movement of thirty-seven of their players after each NFL season. After the decision, NFL vice president for communications Joe Browne said that the court found Plan B to be too restrictive, but did not deem that restrictions as a whole are illegal. The franchise tag, a restrictive instrumentality, remains a tool for NFL organizations.

One of the guidelines that Judge David Doty, who presided over the Plan B case, provided the jurors was: "Did the players suffer any economic injury from Plan B?" The jury answered in the affirmative. Would a jury today rule in concert with the pool of jurors in 1992 if they were considering the effect of the NFL franchise tag? Unless Jimmy Graham signs a long-term contract with the New Orleans Saints, eradicating the one-year franchise tag compensation of $7.053 million, it appears that the tag could be causing harm to a class of players without a clearly defined position. $5 million is no drop in the bucket, but the franchise tag in its current form was negotiated by the NFL and NFLPA and is governed by principals of Labor Law. It is likely not something that is subject to judicial scrutiny at the moment.

The franchise tag is restrictive in nature, but it was at least promoted as a device that would offer attractive financial compensation to players who received such a tag. The attractiveness of those guaranteed dollars is called into question with the result of Jimmy Graham's arbitration hearing. He has every right in the world to be upset with arbitrator Stephen Burbank's ruling. Yet, the franchise tag is here to stay, at least for the immediate future. Further, it is arguably an advantageous tool not only for teams, but also for fans of those teams who wish to follow clubs that have a chance to maintain team chemistry and high quality of play.